How is it a misleading stat? A stat is just a measurement of a particular aspect of what actually happened in the game. The only way it could be misleading is if the person counting his blocks credited him with either too many or too few. People reading the stats can attach too much or too little importance to that stat, but that does not mean the stat itself is misleading them.
1. I'm going to do my very best not to jump to conclusions. I'm disappointed there was even a hint of a problem in Vegas, but at the same time we have no idea what it could have been. He could have just been at a club and not imbibed, but the Lakers didn't like that he was at a club at all. It could have been he actually had a few drinks on his off day. I have no idea though, so I'll do my best to remain impartial. Still disappointing that there was anything at all, but definitely he's on a one-strike system. If he showed a serious issue, there's no surprise anymore why he's not signed and I expect he won't be. He'll probably have a spot on the D-League team and be told to prove himself for a full year or go take his problems elsewhere. In the meantime, we certainly need more Center help. 2. He's certainly very talented and of course he's more than a shot blocker. The entire reason we as fans have been surprised by his lack of signing is because he showed an (admittedly very raw) ability to do a lot of things in Summer League. He showed excellent shot blocking, excellent shot changing, and he set fantastic screens. He showed some rudimentary post game as well. If he could only keep his head on straight, he'd be an NBA player for sure possibly even a starter.
A blocked this is just touching a shot ball that doesn't go it. It's not a change of possession or a metric that shows a defensed possession. To me it's misleading. How many times does a "shot blocker" leave his man to get 1.8 blocks a game? What happens after the shot is touched? What happens when he doesn't touch the shot? It's not a complete stat without that information.
I get that. But even steals, which result in a change of possession are incomplete. Given that half of all possessions end without a bucket, a steal doesn't tell us what would've happened had there not been a steal. That's not the stat's problem.
This makes my point. Individual defensive stats are misleading. Defense is a team playing together not some guy with 2.5 steals a game and another with 3 blocks a game. For my AAU team I always use a sharpie to line out both Blocks and Steals on the stat sheet before I post it. Team Defensive FG% against is about the best stat I can think of for "defense".
FG% at the rim is a much better indicator of a players impact altering shots. And I'm not just saying that because Hibbert is near the top of the league . Truly disappointed there was any issues with Upshaw, but hopefully it was very minor and we can still get him signed.
I don't know about just FG% at the rim. Some of the best defense is forcing bad shots, shot clock violations, or just making your man not be the guy who takes the shot. Think of Kobe's ball denial defense against someone like T-Mac.
But winning a game isn't just a guy putting up 20/10 either. This is sort of where I think the stat "problem" arises. I don't know anyone who thinks that just because a player fills a stat sheet, he's a good player. There might be some casual fans like that, but few who watch the game regularly. But stats people know all this. They just don't think the stats are in themselves meaningless. They mean something. The task is to discover what.
Good post. Sometimes a block can mean little when it is the result of a stat driven player sacrificing team D, and sometimes it can mean a lot when it is the result of a player as the last line of an intentionally funneled team D plan for instance. It can also mean more in the case of a monster block at a pivotal moment serving to demoralize the other team. But, again, as a bare stat it simply tracks the number of times one player has stopped another player's shot attempt by direct ball contact. In and of itself, there is nothing misleading about that count unless others read more into the stat than it is designed to communicate. @bonk, your argument about your two least favorite stats can be applied to every stat. Remember Twain: "There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics."
Some people would say that a player that averaged: 18.1 Points 12.7 Rebounds 2.1 Blocks 58% FG% 8 time NBA All Star 3 Time Defensive Player of the Year Would have to be an ALL TIME GREAT, or at least a champion. Spoiler: Who is it? Dwight Howard. Stats never tell the whole story.
Why is this now a statistical debate? Upshaw's promise goes beyond traditional stats. I proved that in my Summer Stats thread with concrete evidence that he impacts the game positively with more than just blocked shots.
The problem with Upshaw is that he has a bad rep...so he never gets the benefit of the doubt. If Russell would drink a few beers on his off day...that would be a non event. If Upshaw get cought with a bottle of beer...its OMG...he is insane, red flag, cut him. I have no idea if and what he did. But I assume he is under microscope and everything he does will count against him...sadly, he should be smart enough to anticipate that and keep his nose clean. But it seems he is dumb, as expected. Who else would jeoperdize a 100 mio. career?
Metta needs to walk into Upshaw's shower somewhere SOON. And scare his stupid a** straight...... enough to be a Laker we don't have to worry about. Because he's "worried" about Metta.
